RECORD OF PROCEEDING:
Meeting of the Board of Aldermen of the City of Clarkson Valley, March 5, 2024
Mayor McNamara led everyone with the Pledge of Allegiance.
A roll call for the meeting was taken with the following result:
PRESENT – WARD – ABSENT
- Mayor Sue McNamara
- Alderman Andrew Low – Ward 1
- Alderman Jeff Schweig – Ward 1
- Alderman Honora Schiller – Ward 2
- Alderman Brock MacDonald (via Zoom) – Ward 2
- Alderman Lin Midyett – Ward 3
- Alderman Gregg Bogosian – Ward 3
Also in Attendance:
- City Attorney: Patrick Butler
- City Clerk: Michele McMahon
Alderman Midyett made the Motion to accept the Agenda which was seconded by Alderman Schiller. A voice vote was taken to approve the Agenda and the motion passed.
Mayor McNamara announced there will be no Closed Hearing tonight.
Alderman Schiller made a motion to waive the reading and accept the Minutes of the February 6, 2024, meeting as posted. The motion was seconded by Alderman Low. A voice vote was taken to approve the motion and it passed.
REMARKS, PETITIONS AND COMPLAINTS:
There were no remarks, petitions, or complaints.
REPORTS:
Chesterfield Police Report
Lt. Connelly gave the February Police Report.
Mayor’s Report
Court Report: The amount collected from fines for February was $3,987.25.
Security Options for City Hall along with an Updated Layout and Extra Space: This past month, Mayor McNamara stated she met with representatives of EyeCare Partners (ECP) to discuss the possibility of obtaining a room next door to City Hall to use as the visitor’s room. She also mentioned the Building Commissioner, Brad Holmes, has a draftsman friend who came to City Hall to take measurements of the three rooms. She concluded by saying she would like to see security upgrades made to ensure a secure environment. Lastly, part of going forward with this is that ECP requested a copy of our Property Insurance, which we just went through the process and thanked Alderman Midyett for all his work on obtaining quotes for the additional insurance to ensure the City is properly covered.
Grants Available for Electronic Recycling and Paper Shredding Event: Mayor McNamara reported she attended an informational meeting describing the grant process for these events. St. Louis County personnel explained this grant was eligible because 5% of the tipping fee charged to sanitation companies goes to St. Louis County to fund this grant. We are looking at a 3-hour time, from 9:00 to noon on Saturday, November 9. She is asking the Aldermen to attend and help.
Tree Preservation Code: The Mayor stated we do not have a policy currently and named a few cities whose code she was familiar with. This is to guarantee replacement of trees in the case of new construction. She asked who was interested and the responses are as follows: Alderman Schiller said she does not think we need a policy. Aldermen Schweig, Midyett, and Low were relatively neutral and ambivalent to craft a new ordinance regulating this and Alderman Bogosian said he was against it. Alderman MacDonald said he was fairly neutral, but would be willing to work on it.
Coffee with the Mayor: The Mayor has set a date for the 2-hour event for April 14 from 2:00 to 4:00. She said if the Aldermen can attend that will be great but if you cannot make it, that’s okay too. There will be more information at a later date.
Working Sessions: Mayor McNamara said she would like to begin holding a Working Session prior to the Board Meeting. Discussion ensued with Alderman Bogosian stating a few comments, one being he does not think a Working Session would make our meetings any easier and he also believes a consent agenda would help. Alderman Midyett said he would like a Work Session on an as-need-basis. Alderman Low said that if we were to hold one of these sessions, it would have to be close to the meeting date and all necessary meeting material would have to be in hand before the meeting. Alderman Schiller prefers that we do not hold a Working Session as it could be considered non-transparent. Alderman MacDonald said he would go along with a Work Session if it’s posted, although he is not sure it is necessary to hold one all the time. He concluded by saying he is neutral to the idea. Ultimately, the Aldermen agreed that Special Meetings versus Working Sessions would be advisable and only when needed. Alderman Low agreed that a consent agenda would be a good idea and Alderman Bogosian said he would send everyone material regarding this type of agenda.
Aldermanic Reports
Accepting Credit Card Payment: There have been building contractors unable to make payments with a check and the City should be in a position to offer the alternative of using a credit card. Alderman Bogosian looked into several options and determined the product called Square would be just what the City needed. Alderman Bogosian made a motion that the City go with the Square product, seconded by Alderman Low. Alderman MacDonald said there are two programs for Square; one is free and the other, Plus, would cost $29 per month. The City Attorney said the convenience fee could be passed along to the user and everyone agreed that the convenience fee should be passed along to the user. A motion was made by Alderman Bogosian and seconded by Alderman Low to authorize purchase and/or use of the product called Square. A voice vote was taken with a unanimous result and the motion passed.
Cyber Insurance: Alderman Midyett reported that he is still working on the cyber insurance quotes and should have the information and recommendation next month. We already have several quotes, the lowest of which is $1,200 per year and the highest quote is coming in at roughly double that amount. The Professional Liability insurance appears to be approximately $500 per year.
Airbnb: Alderman Midyett said his subdivision, Westhampton, has a potential Airbnb property and he asked if the City had requirements legislating that. The City Attorney said we do have something in the code that prohibits this practice, and he would send it to the Aldermen tomorrow.
Gratitude for ARPA Funding: Alderman Low reported that he attended Kehrs Mill Estates Annual Subdivision Meeting and the trustees were extremely appreciative for the ARPA funds which will be forthcoming once the subdivision streets are repaired.
City Attorney Report:
The City Attorney, Patrick Butler, reported that all is good in the City and he had no report.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
BILL NO. 0538 – AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE MUNICIPAL CODE OF THE CITY OF CLARKSON VALLEY, MISSOURI, IN TITLE VI, CHAPTER 600: ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES, BY DELETING SECTION 600.040 SCHEDULE OF LICENSE FEES AND ADDING A NEW SECTION 600.040 SCHEDULE OF LICENSE FEES.
Mayor McNamara reported that in mid-January, we held a Special Meeting to discuss and pass quite a few Bills, but we subsequently found that the vote was not according to code. The City Administrator read Bill No. 0538. Alderman Schweig made a motion, seconded by Alderman Low to discuss and pass Bill No. 0538. Discussion ensued and Aldermen Schiller and Bogosian stated their concern that there was no justification for increasing the amount to $600 when the work involved in the licensing takes less than ½ an hour. Mayor McNamara began stating the fees being charged by other cities with private clubs and Alderman Bogosian said what other cities do is irrelevant. The City Administrator read Bill No. 0538 the second time. There was a call for the vote and a roll call vote was taken, with the following results. Ayes: Low, MacDonald, Midyett, and Schweig. Nays: Bogosian and Schiller. Whereby, Mayor McNamara declared Bill No. 0538 as having passed and is now Ordinance No. 24-02.
BILL NO. 0539 – AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE MUNICIPAL CODE OF THE CITY OF CLARKSON VALLEY, MISSOURI, IN TITLE V: BUILDING CODES AND REGULATIONS, BY DELETING SECTION 500.020, SECTION R108 FEES AND ADDING A NEW SECTION 500.020, SECTION R108 FEES.
A motion was made by Alderman Midyett to discuss and pass Bill No. 0539. Alderman Schweig seconded the motion. The City Administrator read Bill No. 0539 for the first time. Alderman Schiller said she thinks the fees need to be increased, but this is the wrong way to do it. She concluded by saying this is a luxury tax. Alderman Bogosian stated that annually, the City’s surplus increases and we have sufficient surplus to cover us in the future. The building permit fees need to increase to cover the costs incurred, but this is nowhere near that, and this is gouging the residents. Alderman Bogosian volunteered to work with the Building Commissioner to come up with a solution and to that end, made a motion to table the discussion, seconded by Alderman Schiller. A voice vote was taken with a unanimous decision and the item is considered tabled until placed on a subsequent agenda.
Since the remaining Bills waterfall on top of this Bill, Alderman Schiller made a motion to table Bills Numbered 0539, 0540, 0541, 0542 and 0543, seconded by Alderman Bogosian. A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result.
IT Management Company: One reason we’re having trouble finding an IT company is our desire to have someone run the livestreaming of our meetings. Alderman Low directed everyone to their packets containing copies of the bids and said Absolute Computer Solutions was the company he was recommending, stating both the price they quoted along with their ability to stream our meetings were the reasons he made this recommendation. He mentioned the reasons for not choosing the companies supplying the other bids and Alderman MacDonald reported that he did a thorough review and echoed everything as stated by Alderman Low and said for the scope of our needs, he also recommends Absolute Computer Solutions. Alderman Schiller made a motion to enter into a contract for $800 per month with Absolute Computer Solutions, seconded by Alderman Midyett. A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result.
NEW BUSINESS:
RESOLUTION NO. 24-03 – RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN OF THE CITY OF CLARKSON VALLEY APPROVING THE PAYMENT OF AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT (“ARPA”) FUNDS TO THE HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION OF KEHRSWOOD (“KEHRSWOOD”).
A motion to discuss and pass Resolution No. 24-03 was made by Alderman Schiller and seconded by Alderman Schweig. The City Administrator read the Resolution. There were no questions and there was no discussion. A roll call vote was taken to approve ARPA payment to Kehrswood with the following result: Ayes: Bogosian, MacDonald, Midyett, Schiller and Schweig. There were no nays. Abstention: Low. The motion to approve Resolution No. 24-03 was declared passed.
RESOLUTION NO. 24-04 – RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN OF THE CITY OF CLARKSON VALLEY APPROVING THE REIMBURSEMENT OF THE EMPLOYEE’S BUSINESS-RELATED EXPENSES.
A motion to discuss and pass Resolution No. 24-04 was made by Alderman Schiller and seconded by Alderman Low. The City Administrator read the Resolution which calls for $60 cell phone allotment, $.51 per mile car allowance, food stipend reimbursement, etc. The question was asked if there would be a policy to determine spending limits and eligible allowances, to which the City Attorney said this all must be approved by the Mayor and Board each month and if there are any problems going forward, the City can adopt a policy. The mayor reminded everyone of the purchasing policy we have in place which also supplies limits on spending to $200 without additional approval. Mayor McNamara called for the vote. A roll call vote was taken to approve Resolution No. 24-04 with the following result: Ayes: Bogosian, Low, MacDonald, Midyett, Schiller and Schweig. There were no nays. The motion to approve Resolution No. 24-04 was declared passed.
AUDIT:
Alderman Schiller made a motion to approve the payment of invoices for $96,427.41 seconded by Alderman Midyett. A voice vote was taken to approve the audit with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed.
Alderman Low made a motion to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Alderman Bogosian. A voice vote was taken with a unanimous affirmative result and the motion was declared passed. The Regular Meeting of the Board of Aldermen adjourned at 8:00 p.m.
_______________________________________
Sue McNamara, Mayor
_________________________________________________
ATTEST: Michele McMahon, City Administrator/City Clerk